Catalyst (11 page)

Compared with this stranger, Renee felt unkempt and
dirty. Worse, though, was another emotion that gripped her. Was it
fear or apprehension? This was no stranger but Lem's wife. The
thought sent her mind churning and she realized what was wrong. She
was jealous. With this attractive woman as his wife, why would he
be interested in her?

Renee felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced up to
see Courtney gazing intently at her. "You're better than that stuck
up bitch," the girl whispered. "And don't you forget it."

Another hand grabbed hers and squeezed so hard she
almost gasped. She turned and saw Lem staring at the woman but at
the same time he squeezed her hand.

"Lem," Nikki called and without hesitation flung her
arms around him and kissed him on the lips. Cameras flashed and she
turned to smile at those around.

Renee burned. Lem's hand was gone and throngs of
people crowded around. She knew what was happening. This woman
wanted the limelight. It was one big show for the media. At least,
she hoped it was.

She caught Courtney's eyes and saw the youngster put
a finger to her lips and a hand behind her ear. Listen to Lem, her
body language said. The youngster slipped away, tugged her
grandmother's hand and said something Renee couldn't hear. Amy
touched Jack and the three turned and engaged the reporters in a
conversation.

That was it! Dear Courtney was distracting the media.
It worked, too. A moment later the small crowd had shifted their
attention to the others and Lem was alone with his wife.

Renee glanced at the men holding her stretcher.
"Thank you. Can you leave us for a moment, please?"

"Sure, Ma'am," one replied. "The helicopter will be
here in a few moments and we'll fly you out." He folded down a set
of wheels under the stretcher so Renee remained at waist height and
moved away. She could hear everything Lem said to his wife.

His first words were controlled and neutral. "Okay,
what do you want Nikki?"

"I've come to see my husband rescued after being
entombed beneath the earth."

"Come off it, Nikki. Keep the crap for the
cameras."

"Okay," the woman replied and swished her hair back.
"It's about my shares in
Epsilon Products
. I want to invoke
the buy back clause."

"For how many?"

"The full five hundred thousand, Lem," Nikki
retorted. "I need the money and want to get out of your depressing
little business."

"You know I haven't the finances to buy you out."

Nikki shrugged and took a document from the purse she
carried. "It was made up yesterday," she said and handed the paper
to Lem. "In the terms our original agreement you have the sole
right to purchase my shares. Yesterday they were worth a dollar and
twenty-seven cents per share. You're doing well, Lem. They were
below a dollar nine months back." She smiled coldly. "If, after
thirty days, you don't wish to purchase them, I have the right to
find another buyer." Her smile turned to a smirk. "I have an
offer."

"From whom?"

"Allied Pacific Manufacturing."

"You wouldn't." Lem's cold expression darkened into
fury. "After all these years."

"Why not?" Nikki whispered. "That's it. Buy me out or
I sell to Allied Pacific. It's as simple as that. Thirty days, Lem.
You know who my attorney is." She hitched on another artificial
smile and disappeared through the throng of spectators.

Lem turned to embrace Renee. Not caring that the
ominous eye of a television camera was in the vicinity, he kissed
her passionately and held her in his arms. "There's something I
never had the nerve to say down there."

"And that is?"

"I love you, Renee. I realize that more than ever. It
wasn't just taking advantage of the situation because we happened
to be stranded there."

"I know." She smiled and kissed him back.

****

The afternoon shadows were long when Jack, with Amy
beside him, drove the Chevy Blazer into the small city of Casper, a
hundred and sixty miles south of Misty Depths Catacombs. They
turned off I-25 and found East 2nd Street where the Wyoming Medical
Center, the city's major hospital, was situated.

The pair was barely in the main door when Courtney
rushed up. "Grandma and Jack," she called. "We've been waiting for
hours. What kept you?"

"It's okay for you," Jack muttered. "You three get
whipped down here in a helicopter but your Grandma and me had to
pack up and drive here." He glanced at the teenager's excited face
and broke into a grin. "But how is everyone?"

"Lem and I were declared fit and discharged. Renee
has been in the operating room getting her leg fixed. She's just
come around and Lem is with her. Come on, follow me."

Ignoring the stare of a brisk looking woman behind
the reception desk, Courtney bounded up the corridor, stopped,
realized she was going too fast for Jack and waited.

"I'm right behind you," the elderly man said. "Keep
going, young lady." He turned to Amy when Courtney again surged
ahead. "Inherited her grandmother's enthusiasm for life, didn't
she?"

" Could be," Amy replied with a smile. "I've never
seen her so bouncy. She's grown up and is not the high school kid I
remembered, Jack."

"Come on," the subject of their conversation called
back from a junction in the corridor. "Turn left here."

In a small side room, Renee was lying on a bed with
her plastered leg held aloft by a sling and counterweight joined by
ropes slung over a metal frame above the bed. When the three
arrived she was in deep conversation with Lem and never noticed her
new visitors until Jack gave a polite cough.

"Daddy," she called and broke into a broad grin. "How
did you get here so quickly? Did you fly down?"

"Nope. Brought the Chevy," Jack replied. He bent over
and kissed his daughter. "So how's the leg?"

Renee screwed up her nose. "They had to break the
bone and reset it. I'll be in plaster for six weeks but the doctor
said I'll be discharged in a couple days."

"Luckily, the bone was not a complete fracture but
much of Renee's lower leg was squashed and bruised," Lem added.
"They said the mobile clamps we used were successful in preventing
more serious injuries."

"And the expert way it was applied," Renee added.
"The doctor made a special mention of that, didn't he Lem?"

"I guess."

An hour slipped by with everyone chatting and
catching up with news. The helicopter flight, automobile journey
and even the weather were mentioned but nothing about the future
was discussed. It was as if nobody wanted to disclose innermost
thoughts.

Renee was curious about Amy but assumed she was there
to be with her granddaughter. Since their rescue she hadn't talked
to Courtney, so did not know whether the youngster still wanted to
return home with them. Also playing on her mind was the
confrontation between Lem and his wife. She gazed at him before
drowsiness overcame her and she dropped off into a dreamless
sleep.

****

Breakfast was in progress the next morning when Lem
appeared in Renee's room with a massive armful of flowers. "Flowers
for a beautiful lady."

"Oh, Lem, they're lovely. I'll get a nurse to bring a
vase in." She took a sip of coffee before glancing up with a smile.
"How did you get in so early? "

"Easy," he said. "As long as you look as if you know
what you're doing, nobody intercepts you. I just nodded at the
security guard at the front door and kept walking." He produced a
tiny parcel from his pocket, adding in a solemn voice as he handed
it to her, "Happy Birthday."

"Birthday!" she exclaimed. "It's not my
birthday."

Lem shrugged. "What's a few months between friends?
Call it a peace offering, if you like."

"What for?"

"My wife turning up." Lem turned serious. "You must
have been so embarrassed."

Renee frowned, then remembered the present and undid
the pink paper to reveal an exquisite gold chain bracelet. She
lifted the bracelet and slid it over her wrist. "You didn't have to
do this." She reached up and kissed him. "You aren't responsible
for your wife's behavior."

"No but I want to explain," he replied. "That's why I
slipped away from the others and came here early."

"But this bracelet? Where did you get it?"

Lem flushed. "Courtney told me if I didn't damn make
an effort and get something for you after the way Nikki behaved,
you'd think I was just a lecherous old man who took advantage of
you."

"That sounds like Courtney." Renee laughed. "But she
was wrong, you know. I never thought that."

"Well, she practically dragged me downtown last night
and this is the result." He smiled and reached for Renee's hand
with the new bracelet on. "Mind you, I was thinking along the same
lines myself. She gave me a bit of a shove."

"And I love it." Her eyes met Lem's. "I am curious
about those shares Nikki spoke of and why you were so annoyed."

Lem sighed and sat on the bed. "Allied Pacific
Manufacturing is one of those multinational companies and one of
our main competitors. When we beat them in this latest contract,
they filed a lawsuit against us on pretense that we knew what their
tender was and undercut them. We found later it is just a ploy to
persuade our minority shareholders to sell to them in a hostile
takeover bid."

"And they need Nikki's shares, as well?"

"Yes. I rang my accountant last night and he said
that if APM. can get Nikki's shares they will have enough to take
control. The silly thing is, our company is a drop in the ocean for
them."

"So what would they do if they did take you
over?"

"Close us down. They need our contracts but aren't
interested in continuing the factory as a going concern."

"I see," Renee replied in a lawyer's tone. "It is
lucky you have that buy back clause so Nikki can't just sell the
shares to this other firm."

"Yes."

"But why is your wife so vindictive?"

"I would say she's just bitter but my accountant,
Ashley, has a different slant. Apparently, Nikki needs money
urgently. He heard she has massive debts to pay off. I have no idea
what they are, over extension on the share market, gambling or some
shady deal, I guess. She is quite capable of anything. My wife is a
selfish greedy woman, I'm afraid."

"So you'll have to buy her out."

"That's the trouble," Lem confessed. "It's necessary
to fly back to Seattle today to arrange the finances." He grimaced.
"I'm taking a flight out at nine."

Renee looked disappointed for a moment but changed
her expression to a smile when she noticed Lem appeared downcast.
"You go and sort it out," she said and reached for his hand. "I'll
be fine. With Dad and Courtney here I'm thoroughly spoiled. I'll
call as soon as we arrive home. At least you're in the same state.
Now if you lived in Miami…"

"That's a point." His frown turned to a smile.

After he left, Renee felt deflated. Deep in thought,
she ran a hand over her new bracelet and failed to notice her
second visitor walk in the room.

"I thought I'd be first but saw Lem on his way out,"
Courtney said and handed Renee a small box of chocolates. "Not as
flash as the flowers and your bracelet but I wanted to thank you as
well."

"I love chocolates but it wasn't necessary," Renee
replied. "You did as much for me as vice versa."

"No, I didn't." Courtney grabbed a piece of toast
Renee hadn't eaten and bit into it. "You both helped in all sorts
of ways." She frowned. "There's something strange going on,
though."

"You mean something else?"

"Yes. Grandma has got the hots for Jack."

"Oh, don't be silly," Renee responded.

"Yeah, well you tell me why she's coming out to
Seattle and all they could do last night is say stupid things at
each other. I was so embarrassed I couldn't look anyone in the
face. Didn't Lem tell you?"

"No."

"My God. Is the man dumb or something?" The teenager
rolled her eyes. "All this hot news and he never says a word."

"Oh, Courtney." Renee laughed. "We had other things
to discuss. He has to go back to Seattle early."

"Yeah, I heard his wife is trying to bleed him
dry."

"More or less." Renee brought her arm out from under
the blanket. "He did say you helped him find my bracelet.
Beautiful, isn't it?"

Courtney grabbed Renee's hand and fingered the
bracelet. "I never picked that one."

"You didn't?"

"Hell, no." Courtney gasped. "This one cost over a
grand. I had no idea he wanted to spend that much and made a
sarcastic joke about buying half a dozen when the sales lady held
it up. I thought he'd bought a cheaper one for about two hundred
bucks. Even that amount seemed a lot."

"I had no idea it was that valuable."

"Believe me, girl, it is. Aren't we lucky that cave
tunnel collapsed?"

Renee agreed. She wondered what other news would be
forthcoming.

It came a few moments later when Jack walked in and
after Courtney discreetly disappeared, muttered that Amy might be
staying in Seattle for a while. "She wants to get to know
Courtney," he said in a defensive voice.

"Daddy, I know. Courtney told me."

"About what?" Jack asked with a scowl.

"That you and Amy are good companions." She laughed.
"Got the hots for each other were her words."

Jack flushed. "That young lady does use expressive
terms." He hesitated. "Do you mind if she accompanies us back
home?"

"Of course I don't. Why should I, Dad?"

"Well, with your mom gone only a little while…"

"That was years ago, Dad, not a few months."

"I suppose it was," Jack said with a twitch of
sadness in his voice. "It doesn't seem that way." He broke into a
smile. "Anyhow, Amy and I are just good friends."